The Cobbler (2014)
Certified: 12A
Duration: 98 minutes
Directed by: Thomas McCarthy
Starring: Adam Sandler, Dan Stevens, Dustin Hoffman, Steve Buscemi, Melonie Diaz, Ellen Barkin, Method Man, Sondra James, Dascha Polanco, Lynn Cohen, Kim Cloutier
KRS Releasing Ltd

It seems that critics have quite an axe to grind with Adam Sandler as each and every movie of his is being taken to the cleaners.

With The Cobbler, Sandler departs from his usual collaborators and teams up with Thomas McCarthy, director of Station Agent (2003) and The Visitor (2008) but despite this, critics have described the movie as the biggest box office disaster for Sandler. I do not agree.

Sandler plays Max Simkin, a cobbler working in Manhattan’s Lower East Side, a trade that has been in the family for four generations. Every night Max returns home to his mother, Sarah (Lynn Cohen), and life appears to be quite normal. However, it takes a sudden shift when he mends a pair of shoes for local hood Ludlow (Method Man) and his machine breaks.

While using an old, traditional sewing machine, Max slips on the shoes he has mended and finds himself transformed into the owner of the shoes. When he takes them off he returns to being regular old Max. This is not a one-time occurrence, however. Whenever he uses the machine on a pair of shoes, the same thing happens.

This leads to some unusual circumstances, especially when he finds himself in an intimate situation with a beautiful lady and is unable to take off his shoes.

While The Cobbler is not Sandler’s best movie, it is superior to other movies of his

Sandler delivers a fine performance that is much better than one might expect of him and he does not make much use of his usual slapstick tics. His is a toned down performance that benefits the movie in spades.

Ellen Barkin is given a nice villainous role while Method Man is also spot on. Buscemi, who has appeared in many a Sandler movie, keeps the movie grounded.

The film could be seen as a modern day fairy tale and is considerably a Jewish version of Freaky Friday.

While The Cobbler is not Sandler’s best movie, it is superior to other movies of his and the mix of fantasy, comedy and drama makes for an experience of the likes of Click (2006) and even better. Sandler provides us with a comedy filled with emotion as he steps out of his comfort zone in order to explore new realms.